Gradual Change Open Closed

During the school year, Millie had never really had time to explore the library. She was in it a few times, meeting a few friends there, and then leaving. But the majority of the time, she didn't find a need to go to the library. Unlike most students, she didn't study or read in the library. It wasn't a smart idea, but hey, she passed anyway!

However, today was different. She wanted to read a book, and get her mind off of everything that happened in school. Hogwarts was not a place for safety and prosperity. No matter how much they said it was- it just wasn't safe.

Entering the library, Millie looked around in the entrance. She wasn't moving, until someone walked by and shoved her away. Millie apologized to them and walked towards the shelves. The books seemed to shine words that she didn't understand. All about learning and basic themes, and the girl wanted to read something about psychology. Lurking through the shelves, she eyed a book the making of magic.

Snagging the book from the shelf, Millie walked over to the first table she could find. A boy sat there, and quickly said hi. He looked younger than her, so she smiled in return. "Heya, I'm Euphrasia, but I prefer Millie." She shook the boys hand, and sat across from him.

She opened the book and looked down at the words. Her bright purple eyes scanned the page, not really absorbing the information written below her. Curiosity got the better of her, and she looked over to the boy.

"What're you reading about?"

Never a stranger of the library, Angellica had made her way into the large room that carried every book a student her age could imagine. There was so much knowledge to be had, to gather and store. Had she ever been a dragon, she would have been the type to hoard knowledge, her cave a repository of lost things, such as this part of the castle. Beaming, she traced a series of spines with her finger, breathing in the scent of what she could only call well kept knowledge.

After picking up a few tomes on her favoured subjects (Potions and Transfiguration), she set off in search of a table to settle on. Normally she opted for one that wasn't full, but these days it seemed a rather rare occurrence. She'd spotted one with a single boy sat, and aimed for it. By the time she made her way to that particular seating arrangement, a girl named Euphrasia was making her introduction. Not wanting to interrupt she eyed around, but sighed as she felt she was about to interrupt people.

"Hey," she greeted with a small wave. "I uh, would you two mind if I joined you?" she found herself asking, hopeful not to be turned away. Realizing they had both introduced themselves to each other, and given she was invading she looked towards both Millie and Gem. "I'm Angellica."

Millie was about to say something to Gem, before she was cut off by someone else. She quickly looked up, and saw a girl who she faintly recognized.

"Sure, Angellica, the more the merrier!"

Gem asked both girls what they were reading, and answered Millie's previous question. Looking down at the book beside her hand, now forgotten, Millie gave a lopsided smile. The book in question was not about something as finicky as owls, or- perhaps more depending on who you'd ask- but it was an interesting topic.

How was the basic foundation of magic formed? How was it shaped to fit witches and wizards needs all around the world? These questions could easily be answered with some work and main predictions, but what if they weren't true? This book most definitely contained words Millie would not ever be able to pronounce.

And somehow, it made her slightly self-conscious of it. These Ravenclaws were obviously brilliant, and she simply wasn't. She was put in Gryffindor for a reason- her big heart and her undeniable courage. Not for her nonexistent brilliance.

"I'm reading about the basic foundation of magic," She started, picking up the book. "But owls are cool, I won't lie. They attacked me and three of my friends earlier in first year." She shrugged nonchalantly, but giggled under her breath.

It was definitely an odd thing to go from Euphrasia to Millie, though as the other she made not mention of it. At least not yet, for the time being she didn’t have it nagging in the back of her mind as she would soon enough. It was bearable, as were many things, like sharing a table or even getting an empty pitcher of pumpkin juice.

With a soft smile she took a seat across from the boy, settling her small stack of tomes before her. The Avifors spellbook for one, along with a few tomes that covered advanced potions, or rather advanced for her, things to be seen later on, but not too distant in the future.

“Owls are interesting creatures, smart,” she added thoughtfully. They had to be in order to know where and how to deliver mail. When Euphrasia spoke of her own reading endeavours, Angellica was impressed. The foundations of magic were definitely worth the read. She might even take a copy back to her dorm for the night, a bit of light reading. Soon enough she was asked what she was reading about and she showed the cover of the first book she read.

"Oh, I'm just catching up on some spells we're going to learn," she told them easily, a soft smile on her lips as she did so. "Nothing remotely as interesting as being attacked by owls," she turned to the other girl. How had that even happened. "Sounds like there might be a story worth sharing there," she smiled, keeping her voice low to not be chided by the librarian.

How to elaborate on a story she barely remembered? It was near impossible. But as the only way to please both Angellica and Gem, she quickly sat up from her slouching position.

Millie closed her eyes, remembering the incident as though it happened yesterday. But so many things filled her head, she had trouble focusing on just one thing, the only event she needed to remember. It was like trying to count papers as they were messed around on a desk, simply impossible.

Remembering the words her mother said one too many times- "Nothing is impossible if you try hard enough"- and Millie finally relaxed her body again.

"It happened ages ago, but I was heading up to the Owlery and I saw this poor boy getting attacked by a herd of owls. There was another girl, River, and a boy called Isaac, who didn't know how to help, so I just told Honey to go protect the boy," She laughed quietly. "And the owls came after us! River ended up passing out, so me and Isaac had to carry her to the hospital. Poor Alan had to walk by himself."

Looking down at her book, she thought instantly of Honey, who had ever so sweetly protected Alan, and always accompanied Millie when she went to the Owlery. But her trips were now far-flung between. Her parents stopped owling every two weeks, soon to every month, and then barely once every two or three months. It was appalling to think that the only connection Millie had to home, was of her rather giant cat.

Angellica watched the boy across from her for a moment and pressed her lips together. Books were collections of knowledge, and owls being so important to society. She wanted to just burst with all the information she could spew, but this wasn’t class, and she wasn’t sure how welcome such a thing would be. Rather than advocate for Owls however, she tilted her head and blinked as she asked a single word, incapable of formulating an entire sentence.

“Male men?” It sounded like an oxymoron, but then there were muggleborns and half-bloods that had all those quirky tidbits of information and methods in which they compensated for the lack of magic.

Soon enough Millie was explaining, or rather weaving a complicated web the blonde wasn’t quite sure she followed. It definitely made the blonde think twice before heading to the owlery. So far, she’d had missives to send home with the owl her mother sent over for care packages. Although she wondered how Honey functioned in this story she drew the conclusion that the girl at their table had a pet, and Angellica found herself slightly jealous.

“Sounds like it was eventful,” she smiled. “Might have to avoid the owlery if the owls attack like that,” she chuckled.

Angellica had had an experience in school that had traumatized her, but in the end she felt she came out stronger for it, not that she was about to discuss her new found fear of lime jello. She was hoping a calmer second year, perhaps with people that would actually miss her if she did die in the depths of the castle.